Category: Faithfulness

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A Life Transformation

As I was reading in Colossians this morning, I immediately thought of a series of stories I read to our younger grandchildren. Two of them are old enough to read the stories for themselves but I think they really enjoy the time of us sitting together, cuddling, and I’m glad they still like to hear the sound of my voice.

Max Lucado, the Christian author, not only writes books for adults but he has a whole children’s book line as well. One of these characters is a caterpillar named Hermie. Hermie has all sorts of adventures, each one teaching him about God’s love and character.

So, I want you to think about Hermie, his transformation, and your life and your transformation as directed by God’s word.

“ When anyone is in Christ, it is a whole new world. The old things are gone; suddenly, everything is new!” II Corinthians 5:17 ERV

Let’s read:

“ Now you are wearing a new life, a life that is new every day. You are growing in your understanding of the one who made you. You are becoming more and more like him. 11 In this new life it doesn’t matter if you are a Greek or a Jew, circumcised or not. It doesn’t matter if you speak a different language or even if you are a Scythian. It doesn’t matter if you are a slave or free. Christ is all that matters, and he is in all of you.

12 God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So your new life should be like this: Show mercy to others. Be kind, humble, gentle, and patient. 13 Don’t be angry with each other, but forgive each other. If you feel someone has wronged you, forgive them. Forgive others because the Lord forgave you. 14 Together with these things, the most important part of your new life is to love each other. Love is what holds everything together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking. It is for peace that you were chosen to be together in one body. And always be thankful.

16 Let the teaching of Christ live inside you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Everything you say and everything you do should be done for Jesus your Lord. And in all you do, give thanks to God the Father through Jesus.” Colossians 3:10-18 ERV

Wow! That’s enough good solid teaching to live on for the next month or so. Daily application of God’s word brings transformation. Our spirit is created new the minute we receive Christ as our Savior, but our emotions and our will need to be transformed on a daily basis.

“ Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.” Romans 12:2 ERV

Don’t give up. Don’t get discouraged by the process. “Let God change you inside with a new way of thinking”. The transformation takes place daily – God is working in us and through us, giving us a new way of thinking, completing the transformation.

“I am sure that the good work God began in you will continue until he completes it on the day when Jesus Christ comes again.” Philippians 1:6 ERV

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Leaving on a Jet Plane

Well, this wonderful trip has come to an end.

We pack up this morning, drive back to Jacksonville, turn in the rental car and board a plane, headed for home. One stop over in Dallas and arrive in Phoenix later today. It’s been fun and exciting – but home is sweet.

That’s my day. What’s yours got in store? Whatever it is the Lord has designed a path and is waiting for us to follow Him.

“Roll your works upon the Lord [commit and trust them wholly to Him; He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and] so shall your plans be established and succeed.” Proverbs 16:3 AMPC

“You, Lord, are my shepherd. I will never be in need. 2 You let me rest in fields of green grass.
You lead me to streams of peaceful water, 3 and you refresh my life. You are true to your name, and you lead me along the right paths.” Psalm 23:1-3 CEV

“ If you will obey the Lord your God, all these blessings will come to you and be yours:

3 “He will bless you in the city and in the field…6 He will bless you at all times in everything you do.” Deuteronomy 28:2-6 ERV

I am praying for your day to be filled with the blessings of the Lord. That’s the kind of day He has designed for us.

I’ll be with you tomorrow from my living room in Queen Valley.

Enjoy the blessings of the day!

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Love the Race

This has been a wonderful week with our daughter and son-in-love in Daytona Beach. We came as a 50th birthday celebration for our oldest daughter and we had a great time.

The main event of the trip culminated yesterday with the 67th running of the Daytona 500, a race we have watched for years on television, dreamed of someday attending and now it was here!

The biggest joy was we got to experience it together! Wonderful family memories we will share for the rest of our days.

I’ve been sitting here for the better part of an hour reliving some of yesterday’s events. We arrived at the track at 8:30 a.m. Found our seats, which we absolutely amazing – we could see the whole 2+ miles of the track. Then for the pre-race activities, just us and 100,000+ of our closest unknown friends. So many people, all here to cheer on 41 drivers, hoping their favorite would win. Even between the 4 of us, we all had different favorites but there was no contention in that.

A concert, a university band, exhibits and displays. Food – lots of food. Race swag to buy and excitement filled the air. The sun was warm and it seemed to be a perfect race day. The race started without a hitch, until lap 9, when it started to rain and the track had to be cleared. We stood/sat for the next 3 1/2 hours – people mingling, eating, laughing – conversations as to how long this delay might take but no one was going home. We were there to see the race.

There was a prize on the line, a goal to reach!

Now, don’t worry I’m not going to give you a play by play – just a comparison.

We were the crowd, but we were also the competitors. We loved watching every car but we were also competing against the elements. Would we become discouraged, would we give up before the ended, would we quit?

“Such a large crowd of witnesses is all around us! So we must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially the sin that just won’t let go. And we must be determined to run the race that is ahead of us. 2  We must keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete. He endured the shame of being nailed to a cross, because he knew later on he would be glad he did. Now he is seated at the right side of God’s throne!” Hebrews 12:1-2 CEV

In our walk with Christ, our spiritual race, we are surrounded by a crowd of witnesses, those who have already completed the race. They cheer for us to keep going, don’t stop, don’t give up. There are also those who hope we fail. Don’t listen to them.

We make the pit stops and get the repairs and tune-ups needed to improve our endurance. When crashes come, we regroup and follow our lead pace car (Jesus). We might brush the wall or hit someone else’s bumper but we maintain control and we finish the race.

There will be rain delays, flat tires, adjustments and even crashes but this is a true saying, we win!

” Athletes work hard to win a crown that cannot last, but we do it for a crown that will last forever.” I Corinthians 9:25 CEV

“ I am grateful that God always makes it possible for Christ to lead us to victory. God also helps us spread the knowledge about Christ everywhere, and this knowledge is like the smell of perfume.” II Corinthians 2:14 CEV

You’re in a race today – enjoy it! Spread the news of the One who makes you a winner!

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Love Forgives, Love Forgets

I’m not sure how many little hearts there are in this Valentine but let’s use it as an example. Not 490, for sure but just imagine each one of them is an expression of forgiveness.

Peter asked Jesus about forgiveness. Obviously, someone had offended Peter and he wanted to know how often he had to forgive.

“Then Peter came to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, how many times may my brother sin against me and I forgive him, up to seven times?’ 22 Jesus said to him, ‘I tell you, not seven times but seventy times seven! ‘” Matthew 18:21-22 NLV

Seven is a very significant number in the Bible. It is the number of completion so I’m sure that Peter must have thought that forgiving 7 times would be more than enough.

Jesus told Peter that seven wasn’t enough. He needed to forgive the offender as much as 70×7, or 490 times. Jesus wasn’t referring to the actual number of 490 and when offended for the 491st time Peter no longer had to forgive. Instead, it did not matter how great the offence, forgiveness was still required.

Let’s take that number, 490, and apply it literally. With 24 hours in a day, that would mean that we must be willing to forgive about 20 times an hour or once every 3 minutes. Seriously?!

Oh Lord, do you really expect us to forgive that often? His answer is yes!

We are to live a life where forgiveness is abundant. Jesus even prayed to forgive those who were responsible for crucifying him.

“Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them. They do not know what they are doing.’” Luke 23:34 NLV

It was a part of everything He did. When Jesus was teaching his disciples to pray he included forgiving and forgiveness in that model prayer. You remember he said, “Forgive our sins, just as we have forgiven those who did wrong to us.” Matthew 6:12 ERV

Now for all of you who might be tempted to keep track and start counting we have been given teaching on that too.

“ Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. 6 Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits.” I Cor. 13:4-7 ERV

I’m so glad that I didn’t write this. I sometimes rationalize and make excuses for not being more forgiving, but God removes all that. I am so glad He does because if I could justify my lack of forgiveness, He certainly would have reason to in judging me for my actions.

Thank you Lord that you don’t! Thank you that You freely give your forgiveness to all of us. Lord, we desire to be more like you. Remind us of the 490 so that we can see just how much You are willing to forgive us each day. Your love never gives up on us. We want to be like you.

“ You were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self. But God gave you new life together with Christ. He forgave all our sins. 14 Because we broke God’s laws, we owed a debt—a debt that listed all the rules we failed to follow. But God forgave us of that debt. He took it away and nailed it to the cross.” Colossians 2:13-14 ERV

Thank you, Lord, that You quit counting. Thank you that You forgave all!

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Filled With Song

You all know that I am a fan of songs – hymns, praise, country, classic, jazz, old rock, musicals. Music fills my soul. I guess that’s why I love the psalms and also love the early mornings when the birds start their chorus.

Music brings healing and peace. Composers have an amazing God-given talent. He is the One who gave each bird their voice, unique and distinct and He also fills man’s heart with song.

I did a search on singing birds this morning and it produced many individual images but what surprised me was how many hour-plus long videos of birds singing were a part of the result.

“ Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! 2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God as long as I live. 3 Do not put your trust in princes, in a son of a man, who cannot save us. 4 When his spirit leaves, he returns to the earth. His thoughts end on that day. 5 Happy is he whose help is the God of Jacob, and whose hope is in the Lord his God. 6 The Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them. He is faithful forever. 7 He helps those who have a bad power over them. He gives food to the hungry. And He sets those in prison free.

8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are brought down. The Lord loves those who are right and good. 9 The Lord keeps the strangers safe. He takes care of the children who have no father and the woman whose husband has died. But He destroys the way of the sinful. 10 The Lord will rule forever. Your God, O Zion, will rule over all people for all time. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 146 NLV

I will sing as long as I live because the Lord loves me!

“But I will sing about your strength, my God, and I will celebrate because of your love. You are my fortress, my place of protection in times of trouble. 17 I will sing your praises! You are my mighty fortress, and you love me.” Psalm 59:16-17 CEV

Do you remember seeing the 1980’s movie Sister Act? Those kids’ lives were changed when they realized that God loved their songs, contemporary and traditional. Unconventional to some but pleasing to God.

An old hymn they featured goes something like this:

“Why should I feel discouraged,

Why should the shadows come,

Why should my heart be lonely,

And long for Heav’n and home,

When Jesus is my portion?

My constant friend is He:

His eye is on the sparrow,

And I know He watches me;

His eye is on the sparrow,

And I know He watches me.

I sing because I’m happy

I sing because I’m free,

For His eye is on the sparrow,

And I know He watches me.”

“You will teach me the right way to live. Just being with you will bring complete happiness. Being at your right side will make me happy forever.” Psalm 16:11 ERV

Being in God’s presence is a place of safety and a place of joy. Fill your life with song!

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Surrounded By Love

I hope you are finding strength, joy, comfort and peace in our morning times together, as we explore the depths of God’s goodness.

Each morning the Lord reminds me of His love, girds me with strength, fills my heart with joy and infuses me with confidence that my trust and hope in Him is never in vain.

“Many are saying of me, ‘There is no help for him in God.’ 3 But You, O Lord, are a covering around me, my shining-greatness, and the One Who lifts my head. 4 I was crying to the Lord with my voice. And He answered me from His holy mountain. 5 I lay down and slept, and I woke up again, for the Lord keeps me safe… 8 It is You Who saves, O Lord. May You bring happiness to Your people.” Psalm 3:2-4,8 NLV

This Psalm was written by King David when he was running from his son Absolom who wanted to kill him and take his throne.

Talk about discouragement and hopelessness – this was it.

Your own son and some of your closest advisors and confidants joined together to kill you. If you stand and fight, lives will be lost, probably the life of your son. It seems to be a no-win situation. But then…you turn to God and He provides the safety and protection that you need.

I doubt any of us has ever faced such a situation, but we have all faced weariness and the enemy of hopelessness.

How do we survive? The enemy seems too large to fight any longer.

“ I will lift up my eyes to the mountains. Where will my help come from? 2 My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your feet go out from under you. He Who watches over you will not sleep. 4 Listen, He Who watches over Israel will not close his eyes or sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you. The Lord is your safe cover at your right hand. 6 The sun will not hurt you during the day and the moon will not hurt you during the night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all that is sinful. He will watch over your soul. 8 The Lord will watch over your coming and going, now and forever.” Psalm 121 NLV

The Father’s watchful care will not cease, He promises it now and forever. We are His beloved children, and He is our loving Father. He is ALWAYS faithful to His word.

“ Give all your worries to Him because He cares for you.” I Peter 5:7 NLV

When worries come and they will, we have two choices. We can let them become embedded in our hearts and produce fear or we can give them over to the Father and let Him handle them while we rest in His peace.

“ When we have learned not to give up, it shows we have stood the test. When we have stood the test, it gives us hope. 5 Hope never makes us ashamed because the love of God has come into our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who was given to us.” Romans 5:4-5 NLV

Take today’s worries and hand them over to the Father. Now, rest in His loving care!

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I Will Live

Last night as I was drifting off to sleep, I felt the Lord encouraging me to share part of my story with all of you.

About thirteen years ago I nearly died from acute pancreatitis. It came on suddenly, very suddenly. I was home alone one afternoon doing my ironing. I had such severe abdominal pain that I had to keep sitting down to avoid passing out.

I got up to use the bathroom and when I stood, I fell to the floor in excruciating pain. These were the next words to come from mouth. “I will live and not die and declare the glory of the Lord”. I knew I was in trouble.

I lay there only a few minutes when there was a knock at the door. I called out to come in and it was a dear neighbor, sent by God, who came to return an empty dish. Yes, God sent her. She got my phone and called Dave and he and another friend took me to the local ER.

It was there they discovered that my liver enzymes were off the charts. The ER doctor told me he had never seen numbers that high. We were working out of state and unfamiliar with any medical facilities and they needed to transfer me by ambulance to a larger city hospital. We had to make a choice not knowing anything about any of the hospitals. The Lord directed that too.

“I will live and not die, and I will tell what the Lord has done.” Psalm 118:17 ERV

With each wave of pain, I kept standing on God’s word; telling myself and the enemy, Satan, that I will live and not die and declare the glory of the Lord. I knew I was not only in a physical battle but a spiritual one. God is not a liar; He doesn’t break His word.

“A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came to give life—life that is full and good.” John 10:10 ERV

For the next seven days I was hooked to IV’s. Fluids, pain meds and nutrients. Doctors, nurses, specialists and a dear sweet chaplain.

“But I really believe that I will see the Lord’s goodness before I die. 14 Wait for the Lord’s help. Be strong and brave, and wait for the Lord’s help.” Psalm 27:13-14 ERV

“He forgives all our sins and heals all our sicknesses. Psalm 103:3 ERV

These were the verses that gave me strength.

Dave brought me my Bible and the chaplain gave me a cassette player with praise tapes. Other than a few friends visiting and answering nurses’ and doctors’ questions that was my total communication.

Seven days later Dave took me home and I was still saying I will live and not die and declare the glory of the Lord.

This is why I start my day with prayer and reading God’s word. This is why I share with you each morning.

“Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. And He saved them from their suffering. 20 He sent His Word and healed them. And He saved them from the grave. 21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness and His great works to the children of men!” Psalm 107:19-21 NLV

I declare to you God’s goodness, God is faithful, God’s word never fails. He is worthy to receive all the glory for His marvelous work.

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Every Morning

What things do you do each morning? Well, there’s the obvious. Getting out of bed, making the coffee, brushing teeth, getting dressed, having something to eat, checking your email, kissing your mate. All of these are good, very good, but one is excellent.

“They are to stand every morning and evening to thank and praise the Lord. ” I Chronicles 23:30 NLV

Yes, there is no better way to start the day than thanking God for His goodness and faithfulness.

We are told to come to Him with our cares and our weariness, come with our heaviness, come with our pain. Come with our praise because He is God.

“ O Lord, be kind to us. We have waited for You. Be our strength every morning. Save us in the time of trouble.” Isaiah 33:2 NLV

“We are still alive because the Lord’s faithful love never ends. 23 Every morning he shows it in new ways! You are so very true and loyal! 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my God, and I trust him.” Lamentations 3:22-24 ERV

When we don’t receive instant answers we can get discouraged. Our mind begins to tell us that God isn’t interested in us or that our needs are too small. There is nothing farther from the truth.

“O Lord, in You I have found a safe place. Let me never be ashamed. Set me free, because You do what is right and good. 2 Turn Your ear to me, and be quick to save me. Be my rock of strength, a strong place to keep me safe. 3 For You are my rock and my safe place. For the honor of Your name, lead me and show me the way.” Psalm 31 NLV

Don’t give up. Don’t get discouraged. Continue to put your hope and trust in the Lord.

“The Lord is right and good in all His ways, and kind in all His works. 18 The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth. 19 He will fill the desire of those who fear Him. He will also hear their cry and will save them.” Psalm 145:17-19 NLV

Every morning, as sure as there is a sunrise, the Lord is faithful. Trust Him.

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It’s All Good

Yesterday I had a regular check up with the doctor. When we came to the end of the exam he said, “It’s all good, I won’t need to see you for another year”. I like those words.

It’s All Good.

Yet, this morning as I sat here thinking about the second part of that phrase “I won’t need to see you for another year” it made me sad. Not sad because I won’t be seeing the doctor, I’m glad of that, but sad because that’s how so many think of their relationship with the Father.

When He walks us through the tough times and we find ourselves on the other side of the adversity some find it easy to go back to their regular routine which doesn’t include as much time with the Lord. It’s that time with the Lord that brings us to the good life.

“We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him. These are the people God chose, because that was his plan.” Romans 8:28 ERV

Yesterday I ended with Jesus telling his disciples that He is the good shepherd. Amen!

“The sheep know their shepherd’s voice. He calls each of them by name and leads them out. 4 When he has led out all of his sheep, he walks in front of them, and they follow, because they know his voice…14  I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. 15  Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep.” John 10:3-4,14-15 CEV 

I love this analogy. Sheep following a shepherd. King David used it as well when he wrote Psalm 23. “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. He makes me lay down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters.”

A good shepherd, our Good Shepherd leads us and feeds us. He brings us to a place of rest, and he also cares for us in the presence of our enemies. It’s a daily leading. If sheep are left to themselves in a pasture they will eat the grass to the ground and then colic because they ingest the soil. They need to be led each day, making sure they are still well fed and safe.

“Show me your faithful love this morning. I trust in you. Show me what I should do. I put my life in your hands! 9 Lord, I come to you for protection. Save me from my enemies. 10 Show me what you want me to do. You are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me over level ground.” Psalm 143:8-10 ERV

It’s wonderful to know that the Father is there every morning to show us His love. Every morning. He protects and leads. Holy Spirit is a good leader.

I was so pleased to hear my doctor say all is good, I’ll see you next year but I am more delighted to hear my Father say, “all is well and I’m here to show you my faithful love this morning and each day that follows”.

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Like A Child

Several weeks ago, our oldest granddaughter started a family text page. She wanted to send pictures of their daughters to all of us at the same time. I love that!

We get pictures of our four-year-old and our 3-month-old great granddaughters. It’s wonderful. Often the pictures show the girls with their parents holding them or playing with them. We can almost hear the giggles as we see the smiles.

The girls are content. They are happy. They trust mom and dad. This is the picture that came to mind as I read these verses in Psalms this morning.

“I am not conceited, Lord, and I don’t waste my time on impossible schemes. 2 But I have learned to feel safe and satisfied, like a young child in its mother’s arms. 3 People of Israel, you must trust the Lord now and forever.” Psalm 131 CEV

Oh my. Three short verses but so much wisdom.

Don’t waste time on impossible schemes. Yes, I’ve done that regretfully. Thinking surely this time I have the right idea or am following the right lead, ignoring the uneasiness in the pit of my stomach and moving forward without asking the Lord for direction. Been there, done that, don’t recommend it at all.

Feel safe and satisfied, like a young child. Those images we have been receiving picture this perfectly. Contentment, safety, security, peace and joy. Safe in my Father’s arms. I remember holding one of our granddaughters as I visited with her mom. She was squirming, trying to snuggle in, fighting sleep. And then there was a deep sigh, her body relaxed and rest came. Safe and satisfied. That’s how the Father wants us to be – dependent on Him.

Trust the Lord now and forever. When we trust the Lord, it isn’t a momentary thing. It’s a lifetime experience. These words were written by King David. The young boy who fought the giant and won. The king who ruled Israel. He made mistakes, many of them are recorded in the Bible for us. He’s also the one who wrote Psalm 23, “the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”. Those words came from a heart filled with trust.

As we start this New Year, I hear the Lord telling me to trust! “Like a child, Father I come to sit safely in Your arms, allowing You to lead and direct the concerns and challenges of my life. I trust You!”

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